I just reviewed Hustle & Heart: Foretold by Heath Amodio. #HustleHeartForetold #NetGalley

Interesting graphic novel. It definitely kept my interest through all the pages and events. The artwork is amazing. Derek is the main character and he is trying to make sense of his teleporting-disappearances. Trying to gather clues and make sense of separate occurrences. Casey his daughter is trying to be supportive as she tries to connect past history with what is taking place. It was also a nice touch to have Mothman history and folklore involved. The ending sadly left me with a cliffhanger, making wait and want for the 2nd book to be released.

I found this graphic novel to be entertaining. I enjoyed the artwork and the story line. It does leave off with a cliffhanger, hopefully it won't be too long to wait for the next book.

Derek has been showing up in random places where a tragic event will happen. During one of those visits, he is with his wife, who dies during an event. Fast forward a few months and blacking out and traveling to other places of tragedy start to wear on him and he wants answers. He asks for help from a friend, Alice. She ends up traveling with him to another tragic event and witnesses what he is capable of.

I think this is going to an excellent story once the errors are fixed.

Thank you #NetGalley and #OniPress for sending me the ebook to review. #HustleHeartForetold

With no knowledge as to how, Derek keeps waking up in different areas of the USA. Every time, he is beside a disastrous and fatal incident. Derek has lost his wife, and his behaviour has alienated him from his teenage daughter, Casey. Desperate to learn what's going on, he asks Alice, a psychologist, for help and the two begin to discover what is happening to him.

But, unbeknownst to them all, the FBI is beginning to connect Derek to the disasters and a manhunt is imminent.

Simply, this is a fun premise. It combines classic story elements and uses them to tell a comfortable story. However, while the story itself is easily followed, the writing style and delivery are not. There isn't a natural flow between changes in settings, time or characters' perspectives so the reader has to put the work in to comprehend the plot. It also does little to inform the audience of past events (apart from a few lengthy flashback sequences): one just has to keep up.

The graphics begin well with a strong art style that suits the bold nature of the story. It has a good use of colour to match the darker settings and this transitions well for the different tones in the plot. Yet, this style changes as the book progresses. These changes make it hard to be sure of which character is which and detracts from the narrative. Also on characters, Derek does not look old enough to have a teenage daughter. As such, any panel with them both looks more like friends or siblings interacting rather than parent and child.

There is the occasional inaccuracy that is minor but takes the reader out of the story; one doesn't feel immersed if repeatedly compelled to go back fifty pages and confirm an error. For example, Derek is initially stated to be a professor of astrophysics but is later said to teach history.

This is a fine story and one that ends well for future publications.